Arkansas River commercial tonnage down 2% through June

Arkansas River traffic tonnage totaled 6.19 million between January and June, down 2% compared with the same period in 2023. Declines in inbound traffic contributed to the overall decline, according to a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report.

Inbound traffic totaled 2.09 million tons in the six-month period, down 18% compared with the same period in 2023. Outbound traffic totaled 2.19 million tons, up 10% compared with the same period in 2023. Internal traffic — shipments between ports on the river — totaled 1.9 million tons in the first six months of 2024, also up 10% compared with the 2023 period.

Sand-gravel-rock shipments were the most active in the first six months with 2.25 million tons, up 16% compared with the same period in 2023. Chemical fertilizer shipments were second with 1.38 million tons, down 17% compared with the same period in 2023. Rounding out the top three were iron and steel with 509,485 tons shipped in the first six months, down 27% compared with the same period in 2023.

Tonnage shipped on the river in 2023 totaled 12.208 million, up 10.9% compared with 11.011 million tons in 2022. Shipments of sand, gravel, rock and chemical fertilizers helped drive the 2023 gains.

Inbound shipments – those coming from off the river system – totaled 4.491 million tons during 2023, up 30% compared with 2022. Outbound shipments totaled 4.175 million tons, up 6% compared with 2022. Internal shipments – those sent between port operations on the river – totaled 3.542 million tons, down 1% compared with 2022.

The Arkansas River system — McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS) — is 445 miles long and stretches from the confluence of the Mississippi River to the Port of Catoosa near Tulsa, Okla. The controlled waterway has 18 locks and dams, with 13 in Arkansas and five in Oklahoma.